A decade ago, nonprofit organisations didn’t think very much about “brand”. Many people felt that brand was something businesses did to “market” their products. We have come on a long way since then, and most people now recognise that your brand is extremely powerful, especially for nonprofits!!

Have you ever gone clothes shopping for an event, and not known the appropriate dress code or your size or the colour that reflects your personality? Hopefully not. But many organisations do this all the time, they try to design a new logo or website without thinking about what “brand’ really is, how it reflects their organisation’s persona or values. In fact many organisations don’t even know what their values are or how they should be used to give people a brand experience.

A brand is more than your name, logo, and website. It is a psychological construct which determines how your clients, funders, donors and the community think and feel about you. It determines whether they think you are trustworthy, relevant and exciting. It can determine whether they volunteer with you, work for you, donate to you or access your services.

Branding goes far beyond your logo, which is why nonprofits like Red Cross, Salvation Army, Amnesty International and Guide Dogs Australia take their brand VERY seriously. And they know that a great culture delivers on the promise the brand makes. So it is important to understand the link between culture and brand.

If you don’t have a strong culture, or your brand is tired, out of date or not powerfully attracting the clients, staff and donors you need, the first thing you must do is undertake a discovery session. Never think about ‘re-branding’ or designing a new logo or website without undertaking this session. If you do, it’s like going shopping and wasting your money on clothes that just don’t fit the occasion.